Loom harness



Sept.` 22, 1959 J. J. KAUFMANN LooM HANEss Filed sept. 2o, 1955 LOOM HARNESS olm J. Kaufmann, Jenkintown, Pa., assignor. to Steel Heddle Manufacturing Company, Philadelphia, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania i' .Application september lzo, 1955, serial No. 535,481

z claims. (crass-92) This invention relates to loom harness, and it -relates more particularly to improved means for supporting the heddle rods intermediate their ends in loom harness frames used in installations in which the entering of the Warp is done by means of automatic drawing-in machlnes, and in which it is necessary that the heddles have complete freedom of movement on the rods from end to end of the frame. 1 The present invention relates to supporting means, of Athe character aforesaid, which is more particularly adaptable for use in frames in 'which the top and bottom rails lare made of rwood.

Heretofore, various attempts have been made to provide loom harness frames, of the character aforesaid, Vwith satisfactory means for supporting the heddle rods intermediate their ends, with parts thereof permanently and rigidly attached to the heddle rods whereby wear on Jthe heddle rods and the rod supporting devices, caused by the shock and movement which occurs when the frames .are shedded in the loom, will be eliminated.

It was found to be exceedingly diflicult after the supjporting devices were iixedly secured to the heddle rods, :to bore the holes in the heddle frame rails, by means of which the supporting devices were mounted in the rails,

twith sucient accuracy, so that the frames could be as- :sembled properly and with facility. On the other hand, when the holes were properly located, another difficulty arose by reason of differences in the expansion and contraction of the heddle rods and the top and bottom rails of the frames, by reason of temperature and humidity changes taking place from time to time.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide means for supporting the heddle rods of loom harness frames intermediate their ends, so constructed and arranged that the devices for supporting the heddle rods intermediate their ends may be quickly and easily placed in the rails of the frame.

A further object of the invention is tol provide a device, of the character aforesaid, which will continue to function properly even though changes in temperature and humidity may cause the heddle rods and the rails to expand and contract in diierent degrees.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device, of the character aforesaid, which will be relatively inexpensive, and which can be made by means of available shop tools.

The nature and characteristic features of the present invention will be more readily understood from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing forming part hereof, in which:

Figure l is a front elevation of a loom harness frame with means for supporting the heddle rods intermediate their ends embodying the main features of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a section taken approximately on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1, enlarged;

Fig. 3 is a section taken approximately on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is' a section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3.

It should, of course, be understood that the description and drawing herein are illustrative merely, and that various modifications and changes may be made in the structure disclosed without `departing from the spirit of the invention.

Referring to the drawing, in the particular embodiment of the invention therein shown, the heddle frame proper may be of a conventional kind comprising top and bottom rails 10, connected at their ends by end struts 11, and having mounted therein the heddle rods12 upon which the heddles 13 are slidablymounted. 'Ihe heddles 13 may be and preferably are of the type shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of my previous Letters Patent No. 2,047,511.

The ends of the heddle rods 12.*are supported at or near the end struts in any preferred manner whereby they may be readily placed `in and removed from the frame without endwise movement of the heddle rods.

Such a manner of supporting the heddle rods 12 at their ends as is sho/wn, by way of an example, in the Letters Patent of Frank H. Kaufmann, No. 2,722,949.

The heddle rods are provided, at the desired locations intermediate their ends, with the supporting devices of the present invention each comprising a bolt member 14, one end of which is flattened to provide a head piece 15 to which a heddle rod 12 is secured by rivets 16 or other suitable rigid and permanent fastening means. Welding at this point may, ifvdesired, be used in lieu of the rivets.

A spacing bar 17 is interposed in each instance between the heddle rod 12 and the head portion 15 of the bolt member 14.

The shank portion of the bolt 14 is threaded as at 18 and on said threaded portion 18 there is mounted a complementally threaded sleeve 19v provided with an annular shoulder 20.

The shoulder 20 of the sleeve member 19 is positioned between two elongated plate members 23 and 24, which are secured to the inner edge portion of the rail member 10 by means of wood screws 25.

The `sleeve 19 extends. inwardly toward the heddle rod 12, passing through the plate member 24, and has secured on its inwardly extending portion, in any suitable manner, a knurled sleeve 26. One end :of the sleeve 26 bears against the plate member 24 and serves in conjunction with the shoulder 20 to maintain the sleeve member 19 in ya denite relationship Iwith respect to the inner edge of the rail 10, the arrangement being such that when the knurled sleeve 26 is manually rotated, as well as the sleeve member 19 on which it is secured, the bolt member 14 may thereby be adjusted with respect to the inner edge of the rail and thus bring the heddle rods 12 into proper parallel relationship with respect to each other.

The hole 27 in the rail 10 into which the bolt member 14 extends is of a greater dimension in direction of the length of the rail than the diameter of said bolt 14, and the holes 28 through which the wood screws 25 pass through the plate members 23 and 24 are likewise of a greater length in the horizontal direction of the frame than the diameter of the wood screws 25 which pass therethrough.

By the foregoing arrangement there is provided a loom harness yframe which is so constructed and arranged that the devices for supporting the heddle rods intermediate their ends may be xedly and permanently secured initially to the heddle rods at the desired locations, after which the bolt portions of the supporting devices may be inserted in their respective holes in the frame, and being engaged by the adjusting sleeves 19 and brought to the proper positions so as to be parallel to each other, and suitably located with respect to the top and bottom rails of the frame.

The shaping of the holes 27 in the top and bottom rails, so as to have a greater width in the longitudinal direction of the frame than the diameter of the bolts, will obviate the necesity of extreme accuracy in the location of said holes and, likewise, the provision in the gripping plates 23 and 24 of 'the elongated holes 28 will permit the longitudinal adjustment of the gripping members 23 and 24 to proper positions lengthwise in the frames.

The assembling of the frames, provided with the supporting devices as aforesaid, will be greatly facilitated notwithstanding the supporting devices are xedly and permanently secured to the heddle rods, but also in the event of any differences in the expansion and contraction of the heddle rods and the rails due to change in temperatures and humidity, the same may be readily compensated for by the adjustment of the gripping plates lengthwise in the frames.

I claim:

1. In a loom harness frame comprising top and bottom rails connected at their ends by end struts and having heddle rods removably supported at their ends in the frame, the means for supporting the heddle rods intermediate their ends comprising the provision, at each location, vof a bolt member extending into a hole in the inner edge portion of the rail, yone end of said bolt member being xedly and permanently secured to the heddle rod, a sleeve threaded on the other end of the bolt member, said hole in which the bolt member extends being of a greater dimension in the longitudinal direction of the rail than the diameter of said bolt member, the sleeve member having an annular shoulder, and gripping plates mounted on the inner edge ofthe rail and between which said shoulder is located, and means for securing said gripping plates whereby the same are adjustable in .the longitudinal direction of the rail.

2. In a loom harness frame comprising top and bottom rails connected at their ends by end struts and having heddle rods removably supported at their ends in the frame, the means for Supporting the heddle rods interlmediate their ends comprising the provision, at each location, of a bolt member extending into a hole in the inner edge portion 4of the rail, one kend of said bolt member being xedly and permanently secured .to the heddle rod,` a sleeve threaded on the other end of the bolt member, said hole in which the bolt member extends being of a greater dimension in the 'longitudinal direction of the rail than the diameter ofsaid bolt member, the sleeve member having an annular shoulder, and gripping plates mounted on the inner edge of the rail and between which said shoulder is located, screws extending into the inner edge portion of the rail, and said gripping plates having holes through which said screws extend, said holes being of a dimension in the longitudinal direction of the rail greater than the idiameter of said screws.

References Cited in the liile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,047,511 Kaufmann July 14, 1936 2,287,739 Johnston June 23, 1942 2,668,559 Leveque Feb. 9, 1954 2,707,495 Suchke May 3, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 943,918 France Oct. 11, 1,948 

